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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28102206">Last Christmas</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/CLBoden/pseuds/CLBoden'>CLBoden</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Professor Black Extras [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 21:34:57</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,894</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28102206</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/CLBoden/pseuds/CLBoden</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Professor Black Extras [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2058765</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>7</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Last Christmas</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The morning was peaceful. Lily's boys were sleeping. James was snoring upstairs in their bed. The cat was in it's cat bed in the nursery. And in his crib was little Harry, almost five months old and sleeping soundly without a care in the world.</p><p>Voldemort was still out there, of course, still committing atrocities, and who knew what tomorrow might hold. But today was Christmas, and God knows, they were going to be allowed this one day.</p><p>Lily pulled the flour, cocoa powder and sugar from the cupboard. When they had first married, James had insisted on getting a house-elf, but Lily had soon put stop to any such ideas. Her parents hadn't had help raising her and Petunia, and she would raise a family the old fashioned way too. Of course she used magic from time to time, but Christmas was different. Today she was doing everything the Muggle way. That's why she was awake at four thirty to bake a Yule log.</p><p>By six o'clock Lily had peeled the carrots, parsnips and potatoes, which were now all sat in a big bowl covered with water. The turkey had been defeathered. The pigs were wrapped in their blankets. She was about to start whipping up some butter cream for the Yule log, when there was a mewing at her feet. The cat was up and clearly wanting to go out, so Lily opened the back door for him. A chill blasted into the warm kitchen and the cat dashed out into the snow. Thirty seconds later he was back inside and curled by the fire. Lily locked the door again.</p><p>Lily turned her Muggle wireless on. She liked to keep one foot in the world she came from. </p><p>'<em>Grandma, we love you, grandma, we do ...</em>'</p><p>Oh God, it was those whiny bloody schoolkids. She'd rather listen to John and Yoko's song than this rubbish. She'd rather listen to Cliff bloody Richard. She thought for a moment of her own mother, who'd always like Cliff Richard. This was the first Christmas in years that Lily hadn't bought her a Cliff Richard calendar for Christmas. Not even magic could fix ovarian cancer yet. At least she's lived to see her grandchildren.</p><p>Unfortunately she was the last thing holding Lily and Petunia together. Lily hadn't seen her sister since the funeral. Her son, Dudley, and Harry had got on well, but Petunia wanted nothing to do with the wizarding world and no matter how many letters Lily sent there was never any reply. Lily thought that Petunia expected her to have saved their mother with magic and blamed Lily for her death. Still she'd sent the Dursleys a present and a card. It was Christmas after all, a time for hope.</p><p>'<em>So this is Christmas ...</em>' sang the radio as if taunting Lily. </p><p>She turned it off.</p><p>There was movement upstairs. James was up. She heard him move, zombie-like, to the bathroom. There was a pause, followed by the flush of the toilet. Then - Thud! Thud! Thud! - he made his way down the stairs.</p><p>'Mmm ...' he yawned, 'something smells delicious. Ooh, buttercream!'</p><p>He stuck his finger in the chocolate buttercream and licked it.</p><p>'Needs more cocoa,' he said as Lily slapped him.</p><p>'It's not finished yet,' she scolded, 'and it's for tonight, so bugger off. Make yourself useful and put the kettle on, I'm gasping for a cuppa!'</p><p>'Yes, sir!' James said saluting. 'And Merry Christmas to you too! What time is everyone getting here?' </p><p>'I've told everyone midday, but Wormy always gets here early and Sirius'll turn up whenever he wants to.'</p><p>'Yeah, I expect so.'</p><p>As James finished making the tea there was a tap on the window. An owl carrying the Daily Prophet was there. James let it in and paid it. The owl flew away again.</p><p>'They've reported on Frank's raid the other night,' he sighed as he rifled through the paper. 'We knew it would get out sooner or later. It's that bloody Skeeter woman again - I'd love to know how she finds these things out.'</p><p>Lily finished slathering the log in it's buttercream. There was some left in the bowl. She took it, with the spoon, over to James and sat on his lap.</p><p>'Merry Christmas,' she said, kissing him tenderly. 'Here, just for you.' She scooped the buttercream onto her spoon and moved it towards James's mouth, which he opened wide with glee. At the last second she redirected it's trajectory into her own mouth. James pushed her off his lap and she fell to the floor, the bowl and spoon clattering, Lily herself bent over in laughter. The cat hissed at them, which only made Lily laugh more. James pounced on top of her, and covered her face in kisses.</p><p>'That's it,' he said, keeping her pinned between his thighs, and readying his fingers to tickle her, 'you're for it now!'</p><p>'Don't you dare!' Lily screamed.</p><p>'Too late,' laughed James, 'I'm going to get you!'</p><p>Suddenly they heard crying from upstairs.</p><p>'Saved in the nick of time,' James said, standing up and helping Lily to her feet. 'I see you're already his favourite. But, as you're busy making a mess in here, I suppose that I'll go sort him out.'</p><p>He kissed her forehead and Lily watched as he sauntered out of the kitchen, wiggling his hips. Yes today was Christmas, and it would be a good day.</p><p>*</p><p>As predicted Sirius had turned up when he wanted to, on this occasion it was ten o'clock. Lily didn't mind. They had already opened their presents - including a surprise from her sister (a rather ugly vase, but it was the thought that counts, and to Lily represented hope that all was not lost between them) - and Harry kept the two of them busy whilst Lily finished off the dinner.</p><p>'He's already looking like James,' Sirius said as he fetched a couple of Butterbeers from the kitchen. 'He's got the Potter hair, that's for sure! Don't even attempt to tame that.'</p><p>'Oh, don't worry about that, James has already warned me,' Lily said as she shoved the Turkey into the oven.</p><p>'Your eyes though,' Sirius said.</p><p>'Yeah,' said Lily softly. Not that she ever thought of them as hers though. They'd always be her mother's eyes in her mind.</p><p>Peter was also early, though only by half an hour. The cat, who was always so playful with Sirius, had to be shut away upstairs and for some reason he always hissed at Peter and tried to scratch him. He knew he was a rat, James always said.</p><p>Remus turned up at midday on the dot. It was quarter to twelve before James finally went round to Bathilda's. Mind you at a hundred and seven Lily could forgive her forgetfulness.</p><p>Dinner was served at one o'clock exactly. They had opened their wizard crackers. Lily wore a sombrero; James had a Dunce's cap, which everyone agreed suited him; Sirius had a pink and white striped nightcap; Remus had a multi-coloured, glittery Top Hat; Peter wore a red and yellow cap with a green propeller on the top, which spun madly everytime he laughed; and Bathilda had a pink stetson with the words 'Kiss Me Quick' strewn across it and mistletoe hanging from the front, which made her laugh no end. And she had wasted no time kissing all the young men at the table. Lily was almost jealous of the snog she got back from Sirius.</p><p>'You don't mind if he leaves the bike overnight, do you, Lily?' Peter asked when Sirius finally came up for air, which made everyone laugh once more.</p><p>Every last morsel of food was gobbled down, which Lily was very happy with, and whilst they let their dinner go down they played the Who Am I game with chocolate frog cards that they fixed to their foreheads. James had a very easy time guessing Dumbledore, Lily had it a little tougher with Uric the Oddball. Sure they'd learnt about him at Hogwarts, but she's promptly forgotten anything Professor Binn's had ever said, on any subject, pretty much as soon as the lesson was over. Bathilda had the hardest card though. It took her almost a quarter of an hour to figure out she was herself, despite the fact that no-one managed to keep a straight face throughout her questioning. Her own portrait on the Chocolate Frog card kept rolling her eyes throughout.</p><p>After the Christmas pudding (which Lily set alight with Fire Whiskey for a brighter and more interesting flame than brandy had ever given her mother) they had their coffee, and reminisced about Christmases past. Sirius remembered his first at Hogwarts - his first away from his family, and his first with the other Marauders - very fondly. Peter told of when he was six and had accidentally created a barrage of snowballs that he pelted his father with. His parents were very proud as it was the first time he showed any sign of magic. Up to that point they thought he might be a squib. After Lily, James and Remus offered their favourite memories as well, Bathilda, sherry in hand, regaled them all with tales of Christmases long ago.</p><p>That was the first time Lily found out that their cottage had once been home to the Dumbledore family.</p><p>'Oh, yes, dear,' said Bathilda, 'they kept themselves to themselves back then though. Kendra was a very proud and private woman. But I shouldn't say any more ... I'll have another sherry though, James, if there's one going?'</p><p>Soon Bathilda was tottering back home, and, once Harry was tucked in his cot, Lily joined the others by the Living Room fire and they reminisced about their schooldays. Whenever anyone brought up anything to do with the Order Lily stopped them in their tracks, and reminded them that today was Christmas, and as such, there was to be no talk about the bad things.</p><p>Eventually Peter left, and soon followed by Remus.</p><p>'When're you going to tell him, Moony?' Lily asked Remus as she let him out.</p><p>'Tell who what?' said Remus, feigning confusion. But Lily knew he knew exactly what she meant. She wasn't going to let him get away with it tonight though. It was Christmas. Besides, she'd had one too many Snowballs.</p><p>'When are you going to tell Sirius you're in love with him?'</p><p>She saw Remus blushing in the streetlight, though he tried to hide it.</p><p>'It's not that simple,' Remus said.</p><p>'Course it is,' said Lily. 'You love him and he loves you. What could be more simple than love?'</p><p>'Oh, if only love were so simple,' said Remus sadly. 'You're so lucky. With James I mean. And Harry.'</p><p>Remus leant forward and kissed her on the cheek. She felt a warm tear as their faces touched.</p><p>'Goodnight, Lily. Thank you for a wonderful day. I'll see you in the New Year.'</p><p> With a final, sad Merry Christmas, Remus left, and Lily, who had been up for almost seventeen hours now, kissed her husband goodnight and made her own way to bed. No doubt she would find James and Sirius asleep on the sofa when she made her way back downstairs in the morning. She wouldn't have it any other way. It had been a perfect Christmas, and she could hardly wait until the next one.</p>
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